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Shelly Merner wasn't about to sugar coat how she felt after her first two meetings with Shapes Fitness Centre personal trainer Stefanie Shumsky.

"I'm sore," she bluntly conceded Tuesday afternoon.

Most people who've started a new fitness routine will agree — the first couple of weeks are always the hardest. But once they hit their stride they can feel a sense of new energy that has them anxious to get back in the gym to maintain their momentum.

At least that's what Merner and Neil Draper — winners of our Shape Up to Win contest — are hoping will happen.

The two recently met with Shumsky to begin their eight-week journey to a healthier lifestyle. The meetings included an assessment along with their first couple of training sessions. Shumsky asserted Merner can take heart that it will get better.

"I talked to both of them about stretching to reduce that soreness," Shumsky said. "It opens up the muscle and helps bring nutrients into the area and takes out lactic acid.

"They're going to feel soreness, because they're doing exercises that they've never done before and their body doesn't really know what to do about it ... but soreness is good. It means their body is changing."

Merner, a 36-year-old mother of two young boys who runs a home daycare, said her aching muscles are the result of Shumsky introducing her to 45 minutes of circuit training with resistance machines — a first for Merner as she hasn't had experience working with weights.

"I've got a lot of stairs to take when I'm at home with the kids, so I definitely feel it on my legs and my body, but it hasn't held me back from anything," Merner said. "She rotates me on every machine and I work my whole body. It's 10 reps each and we go around three times, so that's 30 reps per machine.

"She also showed me some ab workouts and leg lifts that I can do at home, using my own body weight."

Merner has found it intimidating when she sees well-toned gym members training on machines that are new to her, but feels more comfortable trying them out with Shumsky's guidance.

"Women won't do anything unless they can do it right," Shumsky said. "They're not going to just hop on a machine and try because they don't want to do it wrong ... typically if I see somebody doing something in the gym incorrectly, it's a guy."

This week, Merner is looking at taking on at least one or two more new challenges, including a hot yoga class and a spin class.

"Yoga intimidates me so it'll be kind of nice to have her push me to do that," Merner said.

Shumsky started Merner and Draper on a stair climber and arch trainer.

"They are both machines that you don't have to do really long to get a good workout," Shumsky said. "They both said the same thing, that they didn't think it would be that hard. Neil was saying 'Wow, this is intense' and that's exactly why we do it.

"An arch trainer is similar to an elliptical, but for people who had knee injuries, it was hurting their knees because of the angle ... but with the arch trainer, the angle is completely different and that's what saves people's knees.

"Also, the range in motion is intense. You're able to go farther back and as your leg extends farther, you're able to hit your glutes and your hamstrings more than just your quadriceps, which is typical for cardio — to work the front of the leg."

‘Soreness is good. It means their body is changing’ says trainer Stefanie Shumsky

Shelly Merner wasn't about to sugar coat how she felt after her first two meetings with Shapes Fitness Centre personal trainer Stefanie Shumsky.

"I'm sore," she bluntly conceded Tuesday afternoon.

Most people who've started a new fitness routine will agree -- the first couple of weeks are always the hardest. But once they hit their stride they can feel a sense of new energy that has them anxious to get back in the gym to maintain their momentum.

At least that's what Merner and Neil Draper -- winners of our Shape Up to Win contest -- are hoping will happen.

The two recently met with Shumsky to begin their eight-week journey to a healthier lifestyle. The meetings included an assessment along with their first couple of training sessions. Shumsky asserted Merner can take heart that it will get better.